Bertram Heyn
Sri Lanka |serviceyears= 19??-1967 |rank=Major General |branch= Ceylon Defence Force Ceylon Army |commands=Commander of the Sri Lankan Army , Chief of Staff of the Sri Lankan Army |unit=Ceylon Light Infantry |battles= World War II |awards=War Medal 1939–1945 |laterwork= President of the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka }} Major General Bertram Russell Heyn, idc, psc, CLI (October 1, 1912—February 3, 1998) was a Sri Lankan general and a cricketer. He was a former Commander of the Ceylon Army. Education and Cricketing career Educated at Royal College, Colombo, he played for the cricket team at Royal College, debuting in 1930 and played in the Royal-Thomian. He played for the Ceylon cricket team and his most famous feat was getting Sir Donald Bradman out on his last appearance in Colombo, in an unofficial Test match between Australia and All-Ceylon on 27 March 1948. Bradman was able to score only 20 runs before being caught out by R.L. de Kretser off Heyn's bowling. Heyn also played hockey. He graduated from the Staff College, Camberley and the Imperial Defence College. Military career He joined the Ceylon Defence Force and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Ceylon Light Infantry before World War II. By the end of the war he was a Captain. When the Ceylon Army was formed in 1949 he was commissioned as a Major in the regular force. In the early 1950s he took command of the Ceylon Light Infantry with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Promoted to the rank of Brigadier he was serving as Chief of Staff of the Army, when, in 1962, an attempted military coup took place. The following year the then army commander was forced to retire and Colonel A.R. Udugama was appointed as army commander, by passing the more senior Brigadier Heyn, even though Heyn wasn't involved in the coup. It was a purely political move, as Udugama was a Sinhala-Buddhist and related to the then Prime Minister. On 11 November 1966 Heyn was appointed Commander of the Ceylon Army and promoted to the rank of Major General. He held the post till his retirement in 30 September 1967. For wartime service, Heyn had earned the War Medal 1939–1945, and for service in the Ceylon Army, he received the Ceylon Armed Services Long Service Medal, the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal and the Ceylon Armed Services Inauguration Medal. Later life In his later years he managed the Sri Lanka cricket team and served as the head of the Cricket Board, as well as on the Sri Lanka Olympic Council. Family General Heyn and his wife Edna had two sons, Richard and David. Richard represented Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) at Field Hockey and played Cricket at top-grade club level. David represented Sri Lanka at Cricket and played Field Hockey at top-grade club level. External links *www.army.lk *B.R.Heyn: The man who caught the ‘Don’, An officer and a gentleman, By Bhahi Sampanthan *Parade Commander Major B.R. Heyn, CLI *Great win for Havielocks Category:1912 births Category:1998 deaths Category:Sri Lankan generals Category:Sri Lankan cricketers Category:All-Ceylon cricketers Category:British Army personnel of World War II Category:Alumni of Royal College, Colombo Category:Ceylonese military personnel of World War II Category:Alumni of the Royal College of Defence Studies Category:Graduates of the Staff College, Camberley Category:Commanders of the Sri Lanka Army